


Sparks of Hope

by HiddenObscurial



Category: Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Canon Compliant, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Fluff, Global Wizarding War, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, M/M, Post-Movie 2: Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, Some gore towards the end, Spoilers for FBCOG
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-27
Updated: 2019-03-29
Packaged: 2019-10-17 09:30:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 8
Words: 13,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17557793
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiddenObscurial/pseuds/HiddenObscurial
Summary: After the events of Paris, Grindelwald, now with Credence on his side, trains him to fight for their cause. Meanwhile, Dumbledore is desperately trying to make up for his mistakes, sending Newt to carry out missions for him. What will happen when the two sides of the war meet, 4 years after Paris?





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first time writing something with multiple chapters, feel free to tell me how to improve on it! Hope you enjoy :D

**Nurmengard Castle, January 1928**

Credence was woken up by the knocking on his room door. 

“Aurelius! It’s time for breakfast, sweetheart!” Queenie called. 

He got up as her footsteps retreated down the corridor. Quickly dressing himself, he glanced at the mirror to check that he looked presentable before heading downstairs. 

He entered the dining hall and sat down at his seat next to Queenie. 

“Good morning, dear,” Queenie greeted, smiling. “I see you’ve slept well?”

Credence nodded politely. “Good morning, Queenie.” 

A house elf served him a platter of food, which he ate quickly. He still could not believe how he was living such a luxurious life, with plates piled high with amazing food for every meal. That wasn’t even the most astounding part of his life at Nurmengard: he was even more fascinated by the endless corridors and rooms filled with little magical things that he had never dreamt existed - lights that turned on automatically when he stepped into a room, enchanted teapots and cups that poured tea for him while he read in the library, and secret rooms that were only accessible if he said the right password. After living almost 20 years of his life without magic, the sheer amount of it present in every corner of Nurmengard never ceased to amaze him. 

“Aurelius, my boy,” Grindelwald said, pulling Credence out of his thoughts. “I have been considering your abilities, and I believe you are ready to start learning to control your magic. Hence, you will start your lessons with me today. Ten o’clock in the drawing room.” 

_Learning magic?_

He could barely contain his excitement as he stuttered out, “Yes, sir, thank you so much.” 

He practically inhaled the rest of his breakfast in his excitement, and rushed upstairs to his room to get himself ready. Tucking his wand into sleeve, he quickly tidied up his room and then went upstairs to the drawing room. 

Grindelwald was standing with his back to the door, leaning against the railing in front of the large window overlooking the Austrian alps. Upon hearing the door creak open, he turned around, his platinum blond hair glinting against the sunlight. 

“Well, Aurelius, as you know, I have other matters to attend to as well, so I expect you to do some learning on your own outside of our lessons. If you prefer it, you may ask Queenie to help you,” Grindelwald said, stepping away from the railing. 

“Now, come closer, my boy. I expect you’ll be able to perform some simple spells by the end of today.” 

Credence stepped forward, pulling out his wand. 

“First, a summoning charm. Flick your wand in an arc, like this-“ Grindelwald demonstrated with his own wand- “and say ‘Accio’. Think about the object you want to summon.” 

Credence concentrated on the book lying on the table. “Accio!” 

The book flew off the desk and into his free hand. Startled, he barely managed to catch it. 

“Very good, my boy. Now do it again.” 

Grindelwald spent the next two hours drilling all sorts of spells and charms. By the time a house elf came to inform them that lunch was about to be served, Credence was able to perform quite a few basic ones, including _Lumos_ , _Reparo_ , and _Alohomora_. 

As Grindelwald waved his wand and sent all the objects they practiced with back into their original spots, he glanced over at Credence. “Good work today, Aurelius. I expect you to practice and learn some other spells with Queenie or any of the other acolytes before our lesson next week.”

“Yes, sir.” 

Sitting in the library after lunch, Credence poured over a textbook that Queenie had told him about - _The Standard Book of Spells - Grade 1_. 

“It’s required reading for our first year at Ilvermorny,” she had said. 

Now alone, Credence threw himself into his studies, eager to learn more about how to control his magic. He learnt of different incantations and the wand movements that accompanied them. He learnt of charms that could create fire, and spells that could make objects fly. The possibilities of his newfound powers now seemed even more endless, and by the time dinner was served, he had mastered another two spells on his own. 

In the evening, entering his room, he concentrated on the fireplace and flicked his wand like how he had seen in the book. “Incendio!” 

Flames crackled to life in the fireplace and he settled down on the bed, placing his wand on the end table. As he pulled the blanket over himself, the lights went out in the room. 

He lay awake in the dark, staring up at the ceiling. Even though it had been four months since he had come to Nurmengard, he still was not sure if he had made the right choice. Of course, Grindelwald and his acolytes had assured him time and time again that he would not receive the same good treatment he got here, anywhere else.

But often, he thought about the others that had been in the tomb with him that night in Paris. The English man with the case, and the head auror who was his brother. Queenie’s sister, the American auror, who had helped him so long ago, back when he was with Ma. He wondered if they were still alive after that fight, if anyone had made it out alive at all. 

And of course, there was Nagini. If she was still alive - _she had to be, right?_ \- where was she? Was she safe? He knew that the ministries of magic across the globe did not tolerate “beasts” like her. The thought of her possibly being hurt, or even dead...

No. She couldn’t be. She would have found a way to survive. 

Blinking away tears, he turned on his side and finally fell into an uneasy sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was probably a bit dry, but next chapter will be about Newtina! Hope you guys enjoyed this one :D


	2. Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Newtina incoming! These two were really fun to write, hope you enjoy :D

**England, February 1928**

Newt and Tina stood on the dock, waving goodbye to Jacob as the ship sailed away in the setting sun. Jacob was going back to America to tend to his bakery, which he couldn’t leave for too long. It was hard bidding farewell to his friend again, after yet another trip full of bittersweet adventures. But unlike the last time he had said goodbye to Jacob in New York, regret and so much grief still hung in the air. The events of Paris had led to Newt losing a dear friend, Tina losing her sister, and Jacob losing his lover. An imminent war now loomed over them, with Grindelwald on the loose and gathering more followers by the day. 

As the ship went out of sight, Newt led Tina back towards the alley they had appeared from, and apparated back to his apartment. Neither of them said anything as they took off their boots and entered the living room. 

Finally, Tina spoke. “I’ll make some dinner?”

“I- Th- That would be wonderful. Thank you, Tina.” Newt caught her eye and promptly ducked his head and smiled awkwardly. 

A smile tugging at her lips, Tina walked into the kitchen, waving her wand to summon plates and wash the vegetables in the basket. As Tina worked, Newt observed her quietly, watching the focused expression on her face fondly. After Paris, they had finally managed to clear the air between them, and Tina had broken things off via owl with Achilles. She had then been transferred to the British ministry to help with the efforts against Grindelwald, and had moved into his apartment just over two weeks ago. 

Within minutes, steaming hot shepherd’s pie was served onto plates and sent onto the dinner table. After finishing their meals, Newt grabbed a plate of the shepherd’s pie for Nagini, who for now lived in his basement as it gave her the privacy she needed for transformations. Then, he led Tina down into the basement. 

He knocked on the door to Nagini’s hut. “Nagini? I’ve got your dinner; Tina made some shepherd’s pie.”

The door creaked open to reveal Nagini. She took the plate in Newt’s hands gratefully. 

“Thank you, Newt, Tina. Do you need any help with your creatures, Newt?” 

“It’s alright, Nagini, I’ll manage fine. I’ll leave you to your dinner now,” Newt smiled. 

Tina settled down next to Nagini and the two watched as Newt went around taking care of his creatures. 

He ran through his usual rounds with the creatures - feeding the hippogriffs, changing the mooncalf’s bandages, checking on the augurey.

As he played with the baby nifflers, he heard footsteps approaching from behind. 

“Do you remember how he escaped at that bank, back in New York?” Tina said, a little laugh in her voice. “You know, I... I wonder if we would have met if that had not happened.” 

“I suppose we wouldn’t have.” Newt glanced up for a moment to see Tina standing next to him, a small smile tugging at her lips, before turning his attention back to the nifflers. “I suppose it was good that he got out, then. No- I mean of course it was bad, but...“ 

Tina’s laugh made a strange warmth explode in his chest. “I know what you mean. But imagine how different it would be now, if we hadn’t met that day.”

“I- I’d imagine it wouldn’t be as wonderful it is now, with you around.” 

Tina’s eyes shone with tears as she gazed at him, in awe at what he had just said. Staring into each other’s eyes, the space between them felt so small and Newt was so tempted to just lean in and pull her towards him and kiss her-

No. He wasn’t sure if she would appreciate it, considering how fresh the events in Paris still were in their minds. He turned his attention back to the nifflers. 

But _Merlin_ , did he want to tell her how he felt. 

From the pocket of his coat, he took out a galleon, and held it in front of the baby niffler. The creature perked up instantly, its tiny paws reaching up, trying to get the golden coin. 

“Tina... Do you know what a niffler does, when it finds a piece of gold?” Newt said suddenly. 

“No, Newt; What _does_ it do?” Tina asked, curious.

Newt gently placed the galleon in the niffler’s paws. The baby niffler excitedly grabbed the coin and started trying to push it into its pouch, which was just barely large enough for its new piece of treasure. 

“It keeps that piece of gold, and it never lets go.”

“Oh, that’s nice-“ Tina started, but Newt stumbled on. 

“Tina, I’m like that niffler, and you- you’re like that piece of gold, and I... I never want to let go.” 

“Newt,” Tina breathed. 

When he looked up, Newt saw her gazing up at him with the same expression he had seen on her face, back in the French Ministry, when he had complimented her eyes.

And then she closed the gap between them and pressed her lips against his, one hand reaching up to his head, her fingers sinking into his brown curls. 

Newt stood in shock for a second, her touch sending a wave of sensation he had not known he was capable of feeling throughout his body, before he melted into the kiss as well, letting his eyes slip closed. He let his hands work their way from her back, up to her neck and then the back of her head. He could feel her other hand curl into a fist, grasping tightly at his blue coat, pulling him even closer. 

When they finally, breathlessly pulled apart, Newt let out a breath he had not realised he had been holding. In that moment, it felt like just him and Tina, alone, in his basement. He had not thought it was possible, but Tina seemed even more beautiful, her eyes filled with joy.

On an impulse, Newt pulled his wand out of the inside of his sleeve. “Accio.”

A small, square wooden box flew into his hand. 

Tina watched him curiously. 

He had not planned to do this today, but it was now a little too late to back out.

Taking a deep breath, he opened the box, revealing a handcrafted silver ring, and got on one knee. 

“Tina, will you marry me?” 

Tina stood in shock for a second, staring at him as if she didn’t believe her eyes. 

Newt could feel his heart plummet. _What if she did not want-_

And then, Tina’s face broke into a smile. “Yes, Newt; yes, I’ll marry you,” she managed to say. 

Newt grinned, looking up at her. He gently took her hand and put the ring onto her finger. This time, it was his turn to close the gap between them, gently pulling her closer and pressing his lips softly against hers. 

And in that moment, it felt like just the two of them, finally alone, with no worry, no grief, no fear, and no war looming ahead of them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The comment Newt makes about nifflers finding gold was inspired by a post I saw on tumblr a while back; I’d link it but I sadly can’t find the post now. 
> 
> Also, feel free to shoot me some prompts (especially for Grindeldore) over on my tumblr, my url is HiddenObscurial! 
> 
> More Credence next chapter! This chapter is probably the last bit of “world-building” I’ll do before I actually start on the main plot of this story. Hope you enjoyed reading :D


	3. Three

**Nurmengard Castle, June 1928**

Credence stood facing Grindelwald, his wand in hand. He was in the drawing room for yet another lesson, and with the war getting closer by the day, Grindelwald had seen it fit to begin teaching him to duel. 

Credence’s control over his magic had improved significantly over the past half a year. He was now able to perform almost all the spells he needed for his daily life in Nurmengard. On top of his lessons, he had also read up on other subjects, the most interesting one being the history of magic. He learnt of how witches and wizards were hunted down in the 16th century, how they were forced into hiding, and how the International Statute of Secrecy was formed. Learning of the exact events that led to groups like Ma’s trying to expose wizardkind angered him - it was, indirectly, the reason why Chastity and Modesty were dead. 

“To duel, you need more conviction that any of the spells you’ve learnt so far for them to work effectively against your opponent. You need to truly _want_ to perform the spell, or it will not have any effect at all.” As Grindelwald talked, he circled around Credence, his boots clicking against the floorboards. 

“Expelliarmus!” 

Suddenly, a jet of red light shot towards Credence, and before he could react, his wand flew out of his hand, and clattered onto the ground. 

“And that, Aurelius, is what almost any witch or wizard trained in dueling can to do you. Once they disarm you, they are free to do whatever they like to you - torture you, capture you and interrogate you, or simply kill you.” 

Grindelwald stopped his pacing and turned to face Credence. “But know this, my boy: I would never, ever see you hurt.”

Credence picked up his wand from the ground.

“Flick your wand like this-“ Grindelwald demonstrated- “and say, ‘Expelliarmus’.” 

“Expelliarmus!” Credence flicked his wand, and a dim jet of red light emerged from the tip of his wand, hitting Grindelwald in the hand. But the wand still stayed firmly in his grip. 

“Focus harder, Aurelius. Imagine you are in a life or death situation. You _have_ to disarm your opponent before they are able to cast a killing curse.” 

Credence repeated the incantation, and this time, Grindelwald’s wand was knocked out of his hand. 

“Very good, my boy. Again, now.”

Over the next few hours before lunch, he quickly picked up the basics of duelling - _Expelliarmus_ , _Protego_ , when to parry, when to use a curse. 

After lunch, he sat on the side his bed, twirling his wand between his fingers, watching Fawkes, his phoenix, who was perched on its stand in the corner of his room, and revising what he had learnt in his head. 

As he went through the new spells he had learnt, it occurred to him that it would serve no purpose if someone like Queenie could read his mind and know exactly what spells he was going to use before he even cast them. 

_Surely there must be a way to hide what was in your mind from a Legilimens?_

He went to the library and found Queenie reading in an armchair. 

“Queenie? Can I ask you something?” 

“Sure, honey, what is it?” Queenie looked up at him from her spot by the window.

“Is it possible to prevent someone with Legilimency from reading your mind?” It was only after the words were out of his mouth that he realised how it sounded to Queenie. 

“I meant, in case I have to duel someone, and they read my mind and counter my spells before I even cast them,” he added hurriedly. 

“Yes, dear, there is a way. I could teach you if you’d like?” Queenie replied kindly, putting down her book. “I must say it is a pretty difficult form of magic, though.” 

Credence nodded and sat down in the armchair next to her. “I can try.” 

“I’m just going to try read your mind, alright? Just try and block out everything you don’t want me to see. I like to think of Occlumency as putting up walls around your thoughts in your mind, so imagine that there’s real walls up in your head, not letting anything in.” 

Credence closed his eyes and focused hard, mentally building up walls around the memories of his past. 

He felt Queenie’s presence like a warmth in his mind, swimming through pools of his unguarded thoughts and memories. And then, she hit the first wall, her presence prodding gently at the bricks, and then pressing harder and harder-

The bricks crumbled away, and he felt Queenie catch just a glimpse of what was behind the wall: the memory of himself in obscurial form, smashing apart the roof of the second salemers’ church, destroying the interior of his old house, and then seeing his sister’s limp, lifeless body on the ground before escaping from the ruin he had caused. 

He focused harder, and put up the walls again, willing Queenie to _get out get out get out-_

Queenie’s presence abruptly withdrew from his mind. 

“I’m so sorry, dear, I really didn’t mean to look,” Queenie apologised. 

“It’s alright,” he replied shakily. “Can I try again?” 

This time, he imagined cornering all his bad memories and caging them up behind those mental walls. Queenie’s presence in his mind reappeared, and he could feel her pressing up against those walls harder and harder. But they did not give way. And finally, she retreated from his mind. 

“Good job, Aurelius,” Queenie exclaimed. “I’ve never seen anyone manage to perform Occlumency anywhere as fast as you did!”

They spent the next hour in the library, with Queenie teaching him to master Occlumency. Perhaps it was because of his will to make sure no one ever saw those memories he hid in the darkest corners of his mind again, but she never got into his mind another another time. 

Standing at the window in his bedroom that night, his eyes aimlessly drifting over the darkness of the mountains outside, he thought of Grindelwald’s words to him - “I would never, ever see you hurt.”

Did he really mean it? 

The words were so painfully familiar to Credence; he remembered Tina, the auror who had found him back in New York, telling him almost the exact same thing. 

_”Credence, I promise you, I’ll never let you get hurt.”_ Tina’s words echoed in his mind. 

She had not helped him when Ma hit him, or when those aurors in New York started attacking him for something he could not control at the time. 

And he remembered meeting Grindelwald for the first time, on the rooftops of Paris. 

_“What do you want?” he had asked._

_“From you? Nothing. For you? Everything I never had,” Grindelwald had replied. “But what is it you want, my boy?”_

_”I want to know who I am,” he had found himself saying._

Grindelwald had kept his promise - he had given him not just his true identity, but a roof over his head, a wand of his own, and a place where he could finally learn to control and harness his powers. He had treated his obscurus as a gift, not a curse - something no one had ever done, not even the British wizard, Newt Scamander, had. 

Perhaps he could trust Grindelwald, he thought. Perhaps. 

His thoughts wandered to Nagini. He had asked Grindelwald’s acolytes about her, but no one had seen her in action since Paris. 

“I wish you had come with me, Nagini... It’s safe here. He’s treated me well, and he would have done the same for you,” he said out loud. 

“I wish you were here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’ve already written about half of the next chapter while being stuck on this one lol. There’s gonna be some action (finally) so look forward to that :D


	4. Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would like to apologise in advance for all the pain I put the characters in this chapter through oops

**England, March 1929**

Tina ran down the street, dodging their attackers’ offensive spells, and casting curses and hexes at the witches and wizards chasing them. All she could hear was the screams of pain as the aurors around her were struck by bolts of bright green light, before their bodies hit the ground and they went silent. 

Behind her, Theseus was calling orders. “Run! I’ll hold them off! Get to safety!” 

As she ran, a jet of green light hit the ground next to her, and she instictively turned to counter the spell, casting another layer of shielding charms. Her heart was pounding, her body running purely on adreneline. 

And then, there was a cry of pain from behind her. _Theseus._

“Take him! Don’t kill him!” One of Grindelwald’s fanatics called out. 

She turned to see two wizards forcing Theseus onto his knees. His wand lay on the ground, just out of reach from him. 

“Theseus!” Tina unleashed another barrage of spells on the enemy, desperately trying to get to her brother-in-law. But she was heavily outnumbered, and her spells were easily deflected away.

“Tina! You have to go!” Theseus shouted, his voice hoarse. “ _Go!_ ” 

Tina fended off spells as Grindelwald’s followers advanced on her. But it was too much for even an auror with her experience and skill to fight off, and a jet of white light hit her in the chest.

-

Tina sat bolt upright in bed, breathing heavily, her eyes brimmed with tears. _Another nightmare. Just another nightmare._

Ever since Theseus had been taken two days ago during a routine raid gone wrong, Tina had been plagued with nightmares, her mind replaying that moment every night in her sleep. 

Beside her, Newt sat up as well, reaching over and holding her tightly. 

“You’re alright, Tina. You’re alright,” he whispered. “You’re safe now.” 

“But Theseus...” Tina said, her voice painfully brittle. “I couldn’t save him. He’s gone because of me, Newt. I shouldn’t have ran ahead... I’m sorry, Newt...” 

Newt hugged her tightly. “No, don’t be. There was nothing you could have done, Tina.” 

“I should have went after him...” Tina fought back a sob as she clung on to Newt. 

“Theseus chose to fight.” Looking up, she saw Newt’s eyes were filled with unshed tears. “I can’t lose you too, Tina.”

They sat in silence in the dark for an hour, savouring each others’ touch, before both of them slowly drifted back into sleep.

-

**Nurmengard Castle, March 1929**

Theseus opened his eyes and found himself on the ground in a dimly-lit cell. His entire body hurt from the numerous spells they had hit him with. A metal chain with runes engraved in the cuff bound him by his leg to the stone wall at the back of his cell. His wand was missing from where he usually kept it in his sleeve.

The memories slowly started coming back to him - running from Grindelwald’s followers, getting hit in the chest by stunning spells, falling to the ground, getting dragged away, and screaming at Tina to run before going unconscious. 

_Tina._ Did she manage to get away? She had to be safe, right?

A set of footsteps approached from the end of the corridor outside his cell. He hauled himself to his feet, wincing in pain as he put his weight on his legs. 

He limped over to the metal bars of his cell, and peered outside. A familiar wizard was walking down the corridor. Abernathy. The MACUSA worker that had turned over to Grindelwald’s side. 

Abernathy stopped in front of his cell. “Cooperate and I will not hurt you. Alright?”

Theseus nodded, and Abernathy pulled out his wand, casting a spell that bound Theseus’ hands together before unlocking the door and releasing him from the metal chain. 

“Come.” Abernathy grabbed him roughly by the shoulder and led him through a maze of staircases and corridors. Theseus tried to remember the path they took, but he lost track by the time they reached their destination. 

Abernathy knocked on the wooden door in front of them, and Grindelwald’s eerily calm voice responded from the room inside. “Come in, Abernathy.” 

Abernathy pushed the door open, revealing a drawing room lined with bookshelves. In the center of the room stood Grindelwald and Credence. 

Before he could react, Abernathy pushed him forward, and he stumbled inside. Then, he was shoved to his knees in front of Grindelwald. 

-

Credence watched as Abernathy forced the auror onto his knees in front of him. 

“You may go now, Abernathy,” Grindelwald said. 

“Yes, sir.” Abernathy bowed and left the room. 

“Now, Aurelius, I will teach you how to use two of the most powerful curses known to wizards.” Grindelwald paced around the auror, who was struggling against the bonds on his wrists. “The first one is the Cruciatus curse. It is a very useful spell, especially for the purpose of interrogation. It causes intense pain, although it does not physically harm the person you cast it on.” 

Grindelwald pointed his wand at the auror. “ _Crucio!_ ”

The auror screamed, and Credence watched in horror as he thrashed against the bonds on his wrists, his face contorted in agony from what seemed like an invisible force trying to kill him from the inside. Then, he fell sideways onto the ground, unable to stay on his knees from the pain.

And then, Grindelwald lowered his wand, and the auror’s screams stopped. 

“And that, Aurelius, is one of the most efficient ways to get information from someone. Your task today will be to extract as much information as you can from this auror before he goes unconscious - anything from his name, who his family or friends are, to information about the Ministries of Magic around Europe.” 

Credence nodded, unsure. “What’s your name?” 

“Theseus,” the auror whispered. “Theseus Scamander.”

“Who else was with you when you were captured?”

Theseus did not reply. 

Credence raised his wand, gathering all his hate for the aurors who tried to kill him in New York. “ _Crucio!_ ”

The bolt of white light hit Theseus in the chest. He groaned, his hands clenching into fists. 

“You need to _want_ it, Aurelius. Try again,” Grindelwald said, reaching out and putting his hand on Credence’s shoulder.

He brought his wand up again, this time thinking of how Theseus had tried to stop him from going to Grindelwald back in the amphitheatre at Paris. He concentrated on the memory of Theseus fighting Grindelwald’s blue flames to try to get to him and drag him away. 

“ _Crucio!_ ”

This time, Theseus let out an anguished scream, curling up on the ground, his eyes squeezed shut from the pain. His gut-wrenching scream startled Credence, and his concentration, along with the curse, broke. 

Credence watched as Theseus looked up at him from the ground, his eyes bloodshot. 

“Credence, don’t do it; he’s manipulating you. Get away from here, and we can help you stay on the right side of this war,” Theseus pleaded. “You have to get away.” 

The use of his old name caught Credence by surprise. He hated the sound of it - it only reminded him of the years spent hiding his magic from Ma; the crack of his belt hitting his palm. 

“My name is Aurelius.” Credence found his voice was no longer unsure, but instead had a hardened, cold edge. 

“ _Crucio!_ ”

-

Theseus could only feel pain. So much _pain_.

It felt like he had been set on fire and stabbed over and over and over again. He couldn’t register what Grindelwald and Credence were saying - everything was just pure, white-hot pain. 

And then, slowly, the pain faded away. He could feel himself breathing heavily, lying on the wooden flooring of the drawing room. 

“Tell me, who was with you when you were captured?” Credence’s voice seemed to come through a long tunnel. 

“My aurors,” he breathed. “Just them.” 

“Give me names.” 

Every instinct in him told him to just say a few names; avoid the torture. But he thought of his fellow aurors, and the amount of life they still had ahead of them. He thought of Tina, who had just married his brother half a year ago. 

“No,” he found himself whispering. 

“ _Crucio!_ ” 

And then the pain started again, searing through his entire body. He was dimly aware of his own piercing screams as he doubled over in pain, tears streaming down his face. 

The cycle continued for what seemed like forever - the agony, followed by a question which he would refuse to answer, then the Cruciatus curse again. 

And then, finally, as he lay half conscious on the ground, his body giving way from the torture he had been put through, he heard Grindelwald’s voice. “-and the incantation is _Avada Kedavra_.” 

So this was how he would die. 

He forced his eyes open, and slowly, ignoring the pain, he pushed himself onto his knees again. 

The world seemed to sway as he forced himself to hold his head high, and look up at Credence. 

“ _Avada Kedavra!_ ”

The jet of green light hit him in the chest. And then he was falling, before the world went black. 

-

Credence lay awake in bed that night. Now alone after a day of lessons, Theseus’ screams haunted him, his piercing cries echoing in his ears. The image of Theseus lying limp and lifeless on the ground was seared into his mind. 

It was only when he turned and felt the wet fabric on his pillow that he realised he was crying. Ashamed, he hurriedly wiped the tears off his face, but he could not stop them from forming. His vision blurred over as he cried, his body shaking with every sob. A whimper escaped his lips, and he buried his face in his pillow, willing himself not to cry. 

There was a rustle of feathers, and he felt Fawkes’ familiar beak nuzzling against his arm. Looking up, he gently stroked Fawkes’ head. 

“What have I done, Fawkes?” he said quietly, his voice cracking. “What have I done?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, please comment if you liked it :)
> 
> Next chapter’s gonna have some grindeldore in it so y’all can look forward to some Angst TM lol.


	5. Five

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some Grindeldore towards the end of this chapter!!

**Hogwarts, December 1929**

Newt knocked on the door of Dumbledore’s office. 

“Come in!” Dumbledore called. 

He pushed open the door and saw his former Defence Against the Dark Arts professor sitting at his desk. 

“Have a seat, Newt,” Dumbledore said. “Would you like some tea?” 

“It’s alright, thank you,” Newt replied, sitting down opposite Dumbledore and placing his case on the ground next to him. “I won’t be staying for long anyway.”

Dumbledore waved his wand, and a teapot drifted over and filled a cup on his desk before settling down on a shelf nearby. 

"Credence has been spotted in action, Newt," he said. "He's able to duel now; some say they've seen him carry out the unforgivable curses." 

"Grindelwald's been teaching him?" Newt asked, surprised. Although Newt knew of his immense magical powers, Credence had only been gone for two years - surely it was not possible for him to have learnt to harness his powers this quickly? 

"I'm afraid so." Dumbledore sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "He's caused many casualties on our side - particularly aurors." 

The mention of aurors made Newt's heart plummet. Even though it had been almost a year since his brother was captured, he had not given up hope that Grindelwald was simply keeping him as a prisoner. 

"Forgive me for asking, but what about Theseus? Has there been any news?" Newt asked. 

Dumbledore shook his head. "I'm sorry, Newt." 

"Is there any way we can get Credence back on our side? If we could just get to him and convince him to come back..." Newt trailed off, unsure.

"As always, Newt, I do hope we can get him alone and convince him to return to our side, but I'm afraid Grindelwald and his acolytes keep a very close eye on him." Dumbledore picked up his teacup and took a small sip. "The Ministry has ordered me to kill Credence on sight." 

"We can't just kill him! He's innocent; he's just being used by Grindelwald!" Newt protested. 

"Unfortunately, Newt, I believe that is the only way we can stop Grindelwald now. This has gone on for too long. He would never let Credence out of his sight long enough for us to get a hold of him," Dumbledore sighed, defeated.

Newt looked up at his former professor and saw that the twinkle in his eyes was gone. He suddenly thought of the pendant he had returned to Dumbledore after the events of Paris. "The blood pact... Have you...?" 

"No. Not yet." Dumbledore said grimly, running his hand through his hair once more. "The magic involved is... complex." 

Newt thought of the terrified boy he had seen in Paris - the tensed shoulders, the fearful eyes. He knew he could not hurt him. 

"If I see Credence... Do I really have to kill him?" Newt asked quietly. 

The professor gave a small, defeated sigh.

“You could try get him back, but I’m afraid so, Newt.” 

-

Newt wandered down the corridors of Hogwarts, not quite wanting to go back to London yet. After all, it was not often he had the chance to walk around the school these days. 

He climbed up the moving staircases to the seventh floor and went down the corridor. Pushing open the wooden door on his right, he stepped into the small cupboard he had spent so much time in during his Hogwarts days. 

Climbing up the steps, he emerged into the familiar cramped space, filled with an assortment of jars and boxes. A layer of dust had settled over the room in its years of disuse. 

On the ledge by the window, a small notebook lay in the dust. 

_She had not taken it when he had been expelled,_ he realised with a start. 

Setting his case down on the ground, he sat down on the window ledge and picked up the leather-bound notebook. He gently blew the dust off the cover, and ran his fingers over the embossed letters on the cover. 

_Newt and Leta._

He flipped through the book carefully, skimming over the yellowed pages full of letters they had written to each other. He had long memorised the words inside this book, thinking that Leta would keep it when he left. 

He paused as he got to the last few pages of the book - he did not remember these pages being written on.

Finding the start of the letter, he quickly checked the date on the top of the page. _March 1914._ A month after he had left Hogwarts for the last time. 

_Dear Newt,_

_I know you’ll never read this, but I’m writing this in the cupboard we always met at when you were still here. It’s been a month since you left, and Hogwarts just hasn’t felt the same since. I really miss you, Newt. It’s really lonely without you around. I miss coming here during breaks and finding you in the corner, tending to another one of your creatures. I come here often to hide from the Gryffindors - they still don’t know about this place. Sometimes, I still expect to see you in here when I come up the stairs. I know you’re busy travelling the world, looking for creatures, but I wish you’d write to me more often._

_With love,_  
_Leta_

As he got to the end of the letter, a tear slipped from his eye, and landed on the page. He watched through his blurred vision as the ink bled across the patch of wet paper. 

It had been two years since Leta’s death, but the pain in his chest every time he thought of her still felt so raw. Memories of the time they had spent together in Hogwarts flashed across his mind - hours spent in this cupboard, teaching her to tend to his creatures; afternoon walks by the Great Lake, looking for Bowtruckles on the little island on the far side of the lake; sitting together in the library studying for their upcoming O.W.L.s. 

“I’m sorry, Leta,” he found himself saying, his voice trembling. “I’m sorry.”

He tucked the notebook into his inner coat pocket, and picked up his case. Taking one last look at the room he had spent so many of his schooling days in, he went down the stairs and out into the corridor. 

He wandered through the seventh floor corridor aimlessly, trying to clear his head. An ornately-carved wooden door seemed to appear out of thin air in the wall beside him, but he was too distracted to question it too much - he was used to random things like that happening around the school. 

He carefully opened the door and stepped inside. A plain, unfurnished room with only a mirror in the corner greeted him. 

Curious, he walked up to the mirror - this was Hogwarts after all; surely it had some special purpose?

On the top of the mirror, the words “Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi” were carved across the top of the gold frame. 

Suddenly, the surface of the mirror rippled, and when the image came into focus again, he saw himself standing in a place that looked like his case or his menagerie basement, but a hundred times larger. Magical creatures roamed around in their habitats, and people - _ordinary wizards_ \- milled around amongst them. 

Somehow, he knew: the image he saw was a world where wizards and magical creatures lived in harmony. 

-

Dumbledore stepped into the Room of Requirement, the blood pact pendant in his hand.

Rounding the corner, he saw Newt standing in front of the Mirror of Erised, staring in wonder at whatever he saw in it. He did not notice him entering the room.

He smiled quietly and allowed Newt a few more seconds to himself, before clearing his throat and making his presence known. 

Newt spun around, his hand reaching for his wand, before relaxing upon seeing who it was. 

“Professor,” he greeted.

“Hello, Newt,” Dumbledore said kindly. “I see you’ve discovered the joys of the Mirror of Erised.”

He approached Newt, placing a hand on his shoulder and gently turning him back towards the mirror. The surface of the mirror rippled, and the image of Grindelwald appeared in the glass, his mismatched eyes staring emotionlessly back at Dumbledore. 

“Do you know what this mirror does?” Dumbledore asked. 

Newt shook his head. “No, but I see myself in some sort of... perfect world - we wizards are living in harmony with creatures...” 

“Let me give you a hint. The happiest man on earth would stand in front of this mirror, and only see himself, unchanged, in it,” Dumbledore said. 

“It shows us what we want?” Newt tried. 

“Yes; it shows us nothing more or less than our heart’s deepest, most desperate desire,” Dumbledore said quietly. 

They stood there in silence for a few seconds before Newt spoke. 

“What do you see in the mirror, professor?” he asked. “I’m sorry if it’s too personal- I should- you don’t have to...“

Dumbledore looked up at Newt. He knew Newt would notice if he lied. 

“You can take a guess,” Dumbledore allowed. 

Newt glanced up at his eyes, then down to his fist closed around the pendant, and in that moment, he seemed to understand. 

“You see Grindelwald in the mirror?” Newt said carefully. 

It seemed Newt could read through him very well. 

He nodded grimly. 

“You loved him, didn’t you?” Newt asked, before seeming to realise his mistake. “I’m sorry, professor, I didn’t mean to intrude-“ 

Dumbledore thought of the days and nights he had spent with Grindelwald. He recalled, almost fondly, the times spent in Professor Bagshot’s library together, or skipping stones across the lake, or the enthusiastic discussions they had in the abandoned barn. He thought of the dozens of letters he had received from his old friend, the ones he still kept in a drawer in his office, after all these years. And he remembered lying in bed with Gellert’s warm body pressed against his, and the heated kisses they had shared. 

“It’s all right, Newt.” Dumbledore tucked the blood pact into his pocket, knowing he would not be able to break it today.

“I did love him.”

The image of Grindelwald seemed to smirk at him, tilting his head and giving him a knowing look. 

In his heart, one last line echoed after he had finished speaking. 

_And I still do._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m already working on the next chapter, stuff is gonna get intense soon! Meanwhile please comment if you liked it, thank you for reading :D
> 
> On a sidenote, FBCOG digital edition + extended cut and deleted scenes came out yesterday, and I actually can’t believe JKR has made Grindeldore a canonically two-way, intense, apparently sexual relationship omg I never thought this day would come but it did!! (We did our waiting, guys, 12 years of it!) For anyone that hasn’t gotten the digital release yet and you’re interested here’s a link for a slightly low quality one while we wait!


	6. Six

**London, February 1935**

“Aurelius, when we go out there today, you only have one mission,” Grindelwald said. “You find Newt Scamander. Kill him.” 

Credence nodded as he walked down the corridor alongside Grindelwald. “I will.”

It had been more than a year since he had started fighting on the front lines with Grindelwald’s followers. He had won them many major battles - he had taken out some of their top aurors, leaving the Ministries across Europe with few leading aurors on the battlefield. 

They emerged on the second floor of the building. The wall of the room had crumbled away from the continuous fighting over the last few days, revealing the chaos outside. Debris was strewn across the road, and traces of dried blood splattered on the asphalt. 

It did not really affect him as much as it did a year ago - it was a daily occurrence now. It was practically a routine: get up every morning, receive a mission from Grindelwald, wait until the right moment, and then venture into the fighting, targeting the one specific person. The sights and sounds of war were almost part of his daily life; something that he would brush off and move on from. Since the day he had killed Theseus, he had sworn not to let his feelings get in the way of doing his job as Grindelwald’s ‘assassin’ of sorts. The streets were quiet now, but Credence knew the fighting would start sooner or later today. The aurors had been trying to get into their base for a week now, knowing that he was being kept here with Grindelwald.

“Scamander will be heavily guarded by aurors; his wife Goldstein is especially protective. He’s here on a mission, and your job is to stop him. You must make sure he dies today.” 

“I understand,” Credence replied. “Will you be out there with me? Or will it just be the acolytes?”

“I will be watching, my boy. I will intervene if necessary, but you must not rely on me to defend you,” Grindelwald said, placing a hand on his shoulder. “The aurors are getting more aggressive with their methods now. They’re determined to kill you.” 

Credence turned to look as a set of hurried footsteps approached from behind. 

“Sir, our scout was killed. The aurors are camping just down the street,” the man said, stopping in the doorway of the room. 

Credence watched as Grindelwald thought for a moment. “Stay where we are. We will let them come to us. They will have to.”

“Yes, sir.” The man bowed and left the room. 

-

Newt hid behind an overturned car, his wand in hand. A few metres away from him, Tina crouched behind a chunk of debris on the road. 

“I don’t see them,” she whispered. “Let’s move in.”

They moved forward together with the rest of the aurors. Newt’s hands were shaking as he watched the buildings in front of them for any movement or signs of life. 

Suddenly, chaos erupted around them. Grindelwald’s followers appeared from buildings, jets of green light flying across the street. 

Newt’s instincts took over, and he cast a shield charm around himself. He could only watch in horror as an auror in front of him was hit in the chest, her body going limp as she fell. 

And then, the asphalt ground under them shook. 

“It’s Credence,” Tina breathed. “His Obscurus...”

The black mass flew over their heads, before plunging down towards them. Newt rolled out of the way quickly, casting another shield charm around him. 

The charm shattered as Credence’s Obscurus slammed itself into it. Newt knew he only had a few seconds before Credence materialised again and killed him. 

“Credence!” Newt called out. “I don’t want to hurt you!” 

The Obscurus seemed to hesitate for a second, hovering above him, its red core dimming. Then, it flew up again, preparing to attack once more. 

Around Newt, aurors who were not engaged in duels started to point their wands towards Credence. 

“No! Hold your fire!” Newt shouted at them, and they warily lowered their wands. 

The Obscurus lunged towards him again, and he quickly apparated out of the way. 

“Credence! I won’t hurt you! Grindelwald’s lying to you; don’t do what he says!” Newt called. 

The Obscurus drifted towards the road, the shards of black coming together, and Credence appeared in front of him. 

“I won’t hurt you, Credence,” Newt said slowly. “I can help you get rid of your curse. You just need to come back to our side.”

Credence frowned, unconsciously lowering the wand in his hand. 

“Aurelius!” Grindelwald’s voice rang out across the street. 

Credence flinched and raised his wand. “ _Avada-_ “ 

“ _Expelliarmus!_ ” Tina shouted from behind him.

“No!” Newt watched as Credence was blasted into the air, before he landed with a thud on the road. 

“Newt, go! He’s only after you!” Tina shouted.

“No one hurt him!” Newt ordered, watching as Credence got to his feet, thankfully unhurt. 

Credence raised his wand again, but this time, his eyes shone with fear. 

“Credence, I won’t hurt you, I promise-“

“ _Crucio!_ ” It was too late to parry away the curse. Credence’s spell hit him in the chest, and excruciating pain took over his body. 

-

Credence was frozen in place as he watched Newt writhe in pain under the Cruciatus curse. In his mind, all he could see was Theseus: the same freckled features, the same deep eyes, the same brown hair. His cries of pain eerily resembled the same ones he had heard from Theseus. 

He gripped the handle of his wand tightly, his hands shaking. He knew he had to kill him now. But no matter how much he willed himself to, he could not get the words out of his mouth. 

Grindelwald’s voice barely registered in his head. “Aurelius! Do it now!” 

And then, suddenly- “Stop!”

Credence watched as Tina flung a curse towards him, which he easily parried away. 

“ _Crucio!_ ” Credence cast the curse towards Tina. The spell hit her in the chest, but it did nothing - his will was simply not there.

He could only watch as Tina grabbed Newt by the arm, and they both apparated away. 

“Meet me back at base, Aurelius.” Grindelwald’s tone was severe. 

With that, Grindelwald apparated away, leaving Credence standing in amongst the quiet remains of the battle. 

-

They appeared back in their apartment. Tina carefully levitated Newt onto their bed, and helped him change into more comfortable clothes. 

“Are you injured anywhere?” she asked.

“No,” Newt said weakly. “Just sore.”

Tina tucked him in gently. “You should get some rest.”

“Tina,” Newt whispered. “Credence... I should have saved him... That could have been my only chance...”

“Shh,” Tina leaned down from where she was standing beside him and kissed him lightly on the lips. “There was nothing more you could have done.” 

“But Grindelwald... What if he...?” Newt trailed off. “He won’t be happy with Credence...”

“We’ll get him away from Grindelwald one day. I know we will,” Tina replied, trying to sound confident. She could only imagine what Credence was going through back at wherever Grindelwald’s base was now; Grindelwald was known for his harsh, unforgiving punishments when his followers failed him. 

“Just get some rest, Newt.”

-

Credence apparated back into their temporary base. Grindelwald stood with his back facing him. 

“My boy,” Grindelwald turned to face Credence. “To say the least, I am disappointed in you.” 

Grindelwald’s words were cold. Credence almost flinched before remembering his place. 

“I’m sorry,” he whispered. 

Grindelwald walked up to him, frowning. His eyes seemed to pierce straight through Credence and into his mind, and Credence ducked his head. 

“Do you doubt the cause, my boy?” 

Credence shook his head. “No.” 

Even though he knew Grindelwald was not a Legilimens like Queenie, he still instinctively started blocking out his thoughts. 

“Look at me, Aurelius.” Grindelwald reached over, his fingers gently tilting Credence’s head up to face him. Credence stiffened under his touch. 

“Do you know who is the greatest threat to our cause?” 

“My brother,” Credence replied. 

“I must remind you; Scamander works for your brother. I need you to remember this, my boy: if we are to create a world where we wizards can live openly, sacrifices will sometimes be necessary,” Grindelwald said, softening at last. “I took you in because I _know_ you are strong enough to make them.”

Credence watched him carefully, looking for any sign that he was lying. But Grindelwald’s expression was unreadable as ever. 

He thought about Newt, and the look on his face he had seen on the battlefield just a few minutes ago. The genuine concern in his voice. The care in his eyes. The uncanny resemblance to his brother as he lay, curled up, screaming, on the ground. 

_Why does Grindelwald want him dead?_ Credence thought. _He hasn’t hurt anyone..._

Grindelwald placed a hand on his shoulder. 

“Do not disappoint me, Aurelius.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a kudos / comment if you enjoyed :D
> 
> I’ll probably be updating this work a little slower over the next few weeks because I’ve got some important exams coming up in school, hope you guys don’t mind!


	7. Seven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: this chapter has a bit of gore that might be a little disturbing, so if you don’t want to read about blood / gore / etc. you might want to skip the first bit of the chapter.
> 
> Sorry I took so long to get this chapter out but it’s almost double the length I normally write! Hope you guys enjoy :D

**Nurmengard Castle, November 1935**

The aurors were everywhere under Credence. He knew Grindelwald’s followers were getting overwhelmed quickly. He watched from above, in Obscurial form, looking for openings where he could dive down, reform, and strike before moving into Obscurial form again. 

He struck out at a lone auror standing at the edge of the battle, and threw them up into the air. Quickly reforming, he pulled out his wand. 

“ _Avada kedavra!_ ” 

The auror crumpled to the ground and went still. He started to dissolve into Obscurial form again, but a spell hit him from behind.

Pain flared through his entire body, and he sank to his knees, crying out. As he tried to get up, another spell hit him in the head. A stabbing pain shot through his skull, and he instinctively reached up, clutching his head. A warm, sticky liquid trickled through his fingers. 

_Blood._

He managed to keep his eyes open, and picked up his wand from where it had fallen onto the ground. “ _Avada kedavra!_ ” 

Another auror in front of him fell, dead, but the others were closing in slowly on him. Grindelwald’s followers were nowhere in sight. 

He channeled his remaining energy into apparating away. He focused hard on the image of their base in his mind, picturing long corridors and stone walls of their headquarters. 

For a second, he thought it had worked - he felt the familiar nauseating sensation of apparition, before he appeared on the hard wooden flooring of the main room in the base. And then, the excrutiating pain hit him. He could only feel pure agony in his hand - it felt like it had been set on fire, the pain eating through his bones. 

Through the haze of pain, he heard someone shouting for a healer. And then, everything went black. 

-

When Credence woke up, he was back in what he recognised as Nurmengard’s medical wing. Queenie was sitting by his bed. 

She flashed him a small smile as he opened his eyes. “It’s good to see you awake, Aurelius; I’ve been awfully worried about you.” 

He looked down at his hand. It was wrapped up in layers of bandages, and where his last two fingers used to be, there were only two mangled stumps. 

“You shouldn’t have apparated away in that state, dear,” she said, noticing his distress. “Apparating all the way back to base while already injured... the splinching could have been so much worse than this. The healers have already tried their best to fix you up, but they said there’s nothing they can do about the splinching.” 

Slowly, he pushed himself into an upright position. He felt in his left sleeve for his wand, but it was not there. “My wand...?”

“It’s right here, honey,” Queenie said, picking up his wand from the table next to his bed and passing it to him. 

He tucked the wand into his sleeve. “Thank you.”

Just then, the door to the room was opened, and Grindelwald stepped inside. The sight of Grindelwald reminded him of the words that he had told him years ago, when he had first started his training. 

_”But know this, my boy: I would never, ever see you hurt.”_

Grindelwald glanced at Queenie. “If you do not mind, Queenie, I would like to talk to Aurelius alone.” 

“Of course.” Queenie stood and moved towards the door. “I’ll come back later, Aurelius; don’t worry.”

Then, she left the two of them alone in the room.

“How are you feeling, my boy?” Grindelwald asked, moving to standing beside his bed. 

“You said you’d never let me get hurt,” Credence said, his voice low. 

“I owe you an apology, Aurelius.” Grindelwald said carefully. “I did not mean for you to get hurt. But you were in a position where it was impossible for any of us to come out to defend you.”

“You lied to me!” Credence shouted. “You said we’d go down in history _together_ , but you almost let me _die!_ ” 

Grindelwald sighed. “It is regrettable, my boy. But what matters is that you are not dead. I know you will be able to defeat Albus Dumbledore; I have Seen it. You must understand that in a war like this, sacrifices have to be made.” 

Credence tried to channel his Obscurus, his entire body shaking from the effort, but it was no use - he was too weak to work any magic. 

“You need rest, Aurelius,” Grindelwald placed a hand on his shoulder. “You may not see it now, but what we are doing, it is for the greater good. You will thank me when the world is ours.” 

-

Credence lay awake in bed, staring at the wooden beams on the ceiling of his room. It was past midnight now, but he was still unable to fall asleep. His mind turned the words that Grindelwald had spoken to him over. _Sacrifices have to be made._

Restless, he got out of bed, fumbling and pulling out his wand from his sleeve. He twirled his wand between his fingers on his good hand as he looked aimlessly out the window. 

_What if Grindelwald doesn’t really care if I’m dead? My hand is proof of that, is it not?_

He thought of how he had gotten here in the first place - finding the adoption papers in New York, travelling to Paris, joining and then escaping the circus...

Could he get away from all of this now? 

He knew that there were anti-apparition charms in place across the area around the castle - he would not be able to escape this easily. He would have to find another way to get out of the grounds before apparating away. 

He changed into a set of warm clothes and put on his coat, before quietly opening the door of his room and peering into the dark hallway. “ _Lumos._ ”

There was no one there. He crept down the hallway, his eyes darting around and checking each corner for any of Grindelwald’s acolytes who might try to stop him. 

From around the corner, he heard voices talking - not acolytes, but definitely Grindelwald’s followers. He hurriedly extinguished the light of his wand, and ducked into the nearest room along the corridor. 

Closing the door behind him, he pressed his ear to the door and listened as the footsteps passed by, and faded away, before letting out a shaky breath that he had not realised he had been holding. 

As he stood leaning against the door, he let his eyes wander over the room he was in. The room was unfamiliar - he had never been in here before. Dozens of wands were displayed on the walls of the room. By the moonlight streaming in from the window, he could see the small, rectangular bronze plaques beneath each mount, bearing a name and a date. 

He relit his wand, and approached the wall nearest to him, holding up his wand to illuminate the words on the plaque. 

_Aster Sparks, 19 January 1931_

He moved down the row, reading the names engraved on the plaques. 

_Oliver Diggory, 11 September 1930_

_Iris Rooks, 25 March 1930_

_Alphias Murray, 17 December 1929_

_Rowan McLaggen, 2 June 1929_

And then, as he neared the end of the row, one of the plaques caught his eye. 

_Theseus Scamander, 20 March 1929_

Suddenly, it clicked in his mind that these wands on the wall had all belonged to witches and wizards who had been killed by Grindelwald’s side in the war. This room was not just another room in Nurmengard - it was a trophy room. A place where Grindelwald displayed his spoils of war. 

Now, looking at the rows of wands mounted on the walls, Credence felt a mixture of disgust and horror. These people... everyone single one of them had probably died like Theseus did - fighting for their family and friends. And all that was left of them was the wand that had fallen from their hand as they were killed. 

On an impulse, he took Theseus’ wand off the wall. The wand was slightly longer than his, and the grip felt awkward and unfamiliar in his hand.

It had been six years, but the thought of Theseus still felt like a knife through his heart. His unwavering loyalty to his friends and family had been burned into Credence’s mind. The shaky _”No._ he had managed as Credence hit him with curse after curse, demanding information about the Ministry and the aurors and Albus Dumbledore. The haunting screams of agony as he curled up on the ground, tortured by the Cruciatus curse. And the eyes that finally went blank after the green light hit him. 

His family probably did not even know that he was dead - Grindelwald never publicly let the Ministry know who he was keeping as a prisoner, and who he had already killed. Perhaps it was the least he could do for Theseus, to bring this last bit of him back to his family, if he did manage to get away tonight. 

He tucked Theseus’ wand into his sleeve and listened at the door again. There was no sound from the corridor. 

He slowly opened the door, and snuck out of the room. 

And then, from the shadows, “Aurelius? What are you doing here this late?”

Abernathy. 

“ _Petrificus Totalus!”_

Abernathy’s body hit the ground with a loud thud, his arms and legs locking together as the body-binding curse took effect. 

His cover was gone now - someone had definitely heard the noise. 

Credence turned and ran towards the gardens, his wand ready in his hand. As he reached the door leading outside, he heard voices shouting from behind him. “He went that way!”

His heart pounding, he tapped his wand to the locked door. “ _Alohomora._ ”

The lock clicked, and he quickly stepped outside. The freezing wind whipped through his coat as he ran through the garden, his footsteps muffled by the layer of snow that had settled over the ground the night before. He reached the wrought-iron fence at the back of the garden and began to climb. His injured hand struggled to grasp onto the metal bars. As he climbed across to the other side of the fence, his footing slipped, and he tumbled towards the ground on the opposite side. 

“ _Arresto Momentum!_ ” he cried, and his fall slowed.

As he got to his feet, he heard shouts from the garden. “He got out! _Stupefy!_ ” 

“ _Protego!_ ” He cast a shielding charm just in time, and the curse hit against the invisible barrier he had put up. 

He took off running as he heard more sets of footsteps approaching, casting another layer of shielding charms behind him. He stumbled through the forest, venturing further and further into the darkness. 

Within minutes, the acolytes behind him were closing in as his stamina started to wear out. Their spells hit against his shield charm, shattering it, just as he cast a new one. He knew he could not take on these acolytes in a duel - they would outnumber him a dozen to one. 

And then, just as he heard Abernathy’s voice just a few feet away from him, he felt the air around him change - it was no longer charged with the magic that always surrounded Nurmengard. He had gotten out range of the anti-apparition charms. 

He cast one last shield charm around himself, and then, he disapparated. 

-

He appeared at the edge of a small Austrian muggle town, where Grindelwald’s base had been a few years ago. He surveyed his surroundings, watching for any sign of magic in the dark street he was on. There was no one in sight. 

“ _Homenum Revelio,_ ” he whispered.

Nothing happened. Satisfied, he relaxed a little, leaning against the wall of the building next to him to catch his breath. 

The town looked different from when he had last been here - he had only ever remembered the crumbling ruins of buildings, the debris littering the streets, and the eerie silence that war left in its wake. Now, there was no sign that any of it had ever happened; the Ministry had come to clear up the destruction long ago, making sure that the muggles had no recollection of the events that had taken place. 

He walked through the silent streets of the town until he found a spot, hidden at the back of an alley, where he could rest. Casting a Disillusionment charm around himself, he lay down on the cold sidewalk, and fell into a light sleep. 

He was woken by the sound of voices talking at the end of the alley. He quietly sat up, reinforcing the charms hiding him from view. It was just starting to turn bright; Muggles strolled down the street, headed to work. 

The voices continued at the entrance of the alley. “He could only have apparated to one of the towns Grindelwald used to control; he doesn’t have enough knowledge of any other locations to apparate to them.” 

Carrow. 

He held up his wand, preparing to defend himself. If Carrow was here, the other acolytes had probably spread out to the other locations he knew well enough to apparate to. He would not be able to get away fast. 

He listened as the footsteps came into the alley, before Carrow and Abernathy came into sight. He quietly shifted himself so that he was hidden behind a stack of empty crates. 

Then, they walked away. Credence let out a breath that he had been holding. 

He waited a little longer before he dared to stand and peer out of the alley. They were nowhere in sight. 

He knew that from now, he would have to travel on foot, or find some way to get enough information about a place to apparate there. It would get harder to get away from Grindelwald’s acolytes. He could go to Dumbledore’s side, but he was not sure if he could trust them either - he had heard from Grindelwald about how manipulative Dumbledore was. If anything, he did not want to get anywhere near this war at all. 

Credence snuck out of the alley and went down the street, still hidden by his charms. Keeping his wand ready, he walked past the bakery in the city centre and swiped a loaf of bread for his breakfast. The muggle baker glanced up as Credence took the bread off the rack, but a quick Confundus charm made him look away again. 

He spent the next few days travelling down up towards Salzburg, where he knew many wizards in Austria resided at. He stopped over at small muggle towns to sleep and get food, and travelled through the night. It was only when he had gotten to Salzburg that he finally relaxed. Grindelwald’s followers would probably not expect him to be here. 

Back in Nurmengard, he had studied about the different wizarding communities around the world - the types of magic they did, what their children studied at their wizarding schools, and most importantly for now, where they gathered together. He knew the wizarding community in Salzburg had their own version of England’s Diagon Alley - Varázsló Sikátor.

Once he entered Salzburg, he managed to apparate to the entrance of the wizarding street, and removed the charms hiding him from the muggles. Tapping his wand against the wall of the derelict building in front of him, he watched as the bricks faded away, revealing the bustling magical street behind it. 

The Varázsló Sikátor reminded him of the wizarding square in Paris, where he had escaped from the Circus Arcanus. The street was lined with shops selling an array of magical goods - he took a quick glance across the shop windows and saw wands, robes, potions, wizarding candy, books displayed proudly behind the glass panes. But those shops were not what he was looking for - in his studies, he had seen that Austria had portkey services. He needed to get out of the country quickly before any wizards here recognised him. 

He walked down the neatly-paved street quickly, looking up at all the shop names hung above each doorway. And finally, he found what he was looking for - _Sigiburt’s Portkeys_. 

The bell hanging on the door rang as he stepped into the store. A small, bearded man, probably in his nineties, stepped out from behind the counter. “Welcome, what can I do for you?” 

“I need a Portkey to Berlin,” Credence said. “As soon as possible, please.” 

Within a few minutes, the portkey, in the form of an old muggle top hat, was ready on the counter. 

“This’ll take you straight to Berlin, young man. That will be twenty galleons,” the man said, holding out his hand. 

Credence flicked his wand towards the man. “ _Stupefy!_ ” 

The man stumbled backwards, stumbling into the shelf behind him before collapsing to the ground, unconscious. Credence grabbed the portkey, and was sucked through into Berlin. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 8 is already in the works so it will probably be up soon unless I decide to write another 3k words on top of the 3k I’ve already written so far lmao. Hope you guys liked this chapter :)


	8. Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long wait since last chapter but I’ve been working on a few other one-shots and then I was busy for the last week. Hope you guys like this chapter :)

**Rio de Janeiro, December 1935**

Credence had been on the run for almost a month now. He had managed to slowly make his way via a combination of portkeys and apparition to Rio de Janeiro. Theseus’ wand was still tucked inside his right sleeve. His clothes were tattered and dirty from the weeks of living on the streets, and his body was littered with wounds left from curses cast by Grindelwald’s acolytes that he had not yet managed to heal. 

Pulling his coat tighter around himself, Credence continued walking briskly through the crowded street. Behind him, he heard the telltale cracking sound of someone apparating. He discreetly pulled out his wand from the inside of his sleeve, preparing to stand his ground against whichever one of Grindelwald’s acolytes it was. 

Credence glanced back, and saw Carrow weaving quickly through the crowd, wand in hand.

He kept walking forwards, quickening his pace as he heard the all-too-familiar sound of Carrow’s shoes clicking against the pavement get nearer and nearer. He frantically pushed through the crowd, turning at every street corner and trying to lose Carrow. 

He had been so focused on trying to shake Carrow off his trail that by the time he realised the alley he was in ended in a dead end, it was too late. 

He turned to face Carrow, who stood blocking the exit. 

“Aurelius, you’ve got one last chance to come back to Nurmengard with me, or I will have to kill you.”

Credence didn’t bother to reply. He raised his wand and cast a curse, but Carrow was faster, deflecting his spell and retaliating with his own. Within seconds, jets of green and red light were sent hurtling across the alley as they engaged in a full-on duel. 

Credence knew Carrow was one of Grindelwald’s best acolytes, and he knew he would not be able to hold on for long. He had to get away fast. As he was backed farther into the alley, he desperately tried to find an opportunity in between casting counter-curses and protection charms to apparate away. He felt his obscurus bubbling up inside him, screaming at him to let it take over, but he knew he would be even more vulnerable in obscurial form - Carrow would be able to kill him with a single curse without him constantly casting shield charms around himself. 

And suddenly, he was sent flying backwards by a curse that he had not managed to parry, and excruciating pain flared all over his body. It was like getting stabbed by hundreds of white-hot knives all at once. He could feel nothing but just agony, so much of it that he almost wished for death. He felt tears streaking down his cheeks as he writhed in pain, unable to do anything to fight the Cruciatus curse. 

There was another shout, and he felt a sharp pain in his chest. Instinctively, his hand reached up and clutched at the wound, and he through the blinding pain, he felt a trickle of slick, warm liquid flowing through his fingers. _Blood._

And then, he just barely made out the sound of Carrow’s voice: “You’ve made the wrong choice, Aurelius. Avada-“

“ _Expelliarmus! Petrificus totalus!_ ” 

Carrow’s incantation was cut off midway, and while Credence was still curled up in pain on the ground, he could feel that the curse had stopped. 

A few sets of footsteps were approaching him, and he felt someone kneel down next to him. 

“He’s still alive, but we have to get him back quickly,” a voice, one that he vaguely recognised as that of the American auror Tina Goldstein, said. 

“He can’t apparate on his own; he’s too weak. We’ll have to get back some other way,” another familiar voice said. Credence felt like he knew who this was, but his mind was already drifting away, desperate to get away from the agonising pain. 

“Credence, I need you to stay awake. Stay with us,” Tina said urgently, but he was so tired... 

-

Newt watched as Credence went still. 

“Hurry, bring him into my case. I’ll get us back to London,” he told Tina. “There’s some Dittany on the shelf in the shed.”

Tina nodded and climbed into Newt’s case, while he scooped Credence’s limp form up and helped lower him into the case. Once they were inside, he picked up Credence’s wand from the ground, picked up his case, and apparated away to their safe house. 

He appeared in the sitting room of the safe house. The house was empty - Eulalie had apparently left while they were out. 

Newt put his case down and climbed inside quickly. He found Tina tending to Credence on the cot in the shed. Credence was still unconscious. Tina stood next to him, her wand in her hand, muttering incantations of healing spells under her breath. A bottle of Dittany stood on the table next to them, the cap already popped off. Evidently, it had already been used. However, blood was still trickling out of the wound on his chest, staining the white sheets under him. 

Tina barely glanced up as Newt rushed over. 

“It’s going to take a while; spell damage is always hard to heal,” Tina said as she applied more Dittany to the wound. 

Newt started working on the smaller wounds that were littered across Credence’s body - small cuts and scrapes that he had suffered, probably while on the run from Grindelwald’s acolytes. 

He lifted Credence’s right arm to check for any injuries. His last two fingers were missing, with only badly-healed stumps in their place, but he could tell that the injury was an old one. 

“He’s splinched himself,” Newt muttered. “I can’t heal it. It’s from at least a few weeks ago.” 

As he moved to roll Credence’s sleeve up to repair the wounds on his arm, he felt a wand tucked on the inside of his forearm. Carefully reaching inside Credence’s sleeve, he found the handle of the wand, and pulled it out. 

Theseus’ wand was unmistakable under the bright light in his case - he would recognise that intricately-carved design on the base of the wand anywhere. 

“Tina,” Newt whispered. “He has Theseus’ wand.”

Tina looked up, her eyes widening. “Do you think he’s still...?”

Newt bit his lip. “I don’t know. I guess I could try to ask Credence once he recovers.”

He tucked Theseus’ wand into the inner pocket of his coat, and focused on taking care of Credence. 

-

Credence woke on an unfamiliar bed. The sheets beneath him were soft and comfortable. It had been weeks since he had last slept in a bed like this. 

The thought made his heart skip a beat. What if Grindelwald had managed to capture him, and he was now back in Nurmengard again?

He forced his eyes open, and saw an unfamiliar low, wooden ceiling above him. _This isn’t Nurmengard,_ he realised. 

Looking down, he realised he was dressed in clothes that were not his. Quickly, he felt for his wand in the inside of his sleeve. 

It was not there. 

Theseus’ wand, which he usually kept in his other sleeve, was not there either. 

He tried to remember how he had gotten here. All he remembered was Carrow hunting him down in Rio, and then the Cruciatus curse, and then... 

Tina. The auror. He had been rescued by the very people Grindelwald had wanted him to destroy.

He steadied his breathing and tried to sit up. A spike of pain shot through his chest, and he slumped back down onto the bed weakly. 

“Credence, you’re awake!” A set of footsteps approached him, and he quickly turned, preparing to defend himself. 

“I’m not going to hurt you,” Tina said gently. “How are you feeling?” 

“Where am I?” He watched Tina carefully.

“You’re in Newt’s case, in a safe house. We’re still in Rio, but we’re going to go back to London. We’ve got to report to the Ministry,” Tina replied. “I’d better get Newt over, he wanted to check on you when you were awake.” 

Tina walked off, and Credence turned his head to the side to look around him. He was in a shed of some sort. Shelves and racks lined the room, each filled with strange tools, bottles of unfamiliar magical liquids, and small plants growing in ceramic pots. In the corner, a book lay on the desk. _Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them,_ read the embossed letters across the cover. 

Within a minute, Newt came rushing into the shed. He was wearing a simple white shirt and a brown vest, his collar loose and undone. 

“Hello, Credence,” Newt said softly. “Are you feeling alright?” 

“It hurts a lot,” he managed. 

“I know. I’m sorry, I don’t exactly have enough resources with me right now to fully heal the wounds that they caused, especially the one on your chest, but once we get back to London, I’ll make sure to fix up everything properly,” Newt said, wringing his hands as he talked. “I’ve still got to contact the Ministry and arrange a Portkey back to London; it’s only been a day and I’ve been sorting out everything I need to before we leave Rio.” 

“You’re going to turn me in to the Ministy, aren’t you,” Credence said, a hint of anger creeping into his voice. 

“Not if you don’t want me to,” Newt said. He sat down on the edge of the bed. “I came to get you on Dumbledore’s orders, not the Ministry’s. I’ll only need to tell him I’ve got you safe. I promise he won’t hurt you. He wants to find a way to keep you out of the war, so both Grindelwald and the Ministry can’t touch you.”

Credence paused for a second, considering Newt’s words. Could he really trust Newt that Dumbledore would not hurt him? But every single time he had trusted anyone so far, it had not turned out well for him...

“Give me back my wand,” he demanded. 

Newt stood and walked over to the opposite wall, where his coat was hung on the coatrack. From the pocket of his coat, he pulled out Credence’s wand, and handed it back to him. 

“Try not to use any magic. You’re too weak for it.”

Newt then reached into the inner pocket of his coat, pulling out another wand - Theseus’. 

“Credence... I found this wand on you. It was- Did you know it’s my brother’s?” Newt asked gently, holding the wand up. “He went missing eight years ago, and I haven’t heard from him since.” 

Credence blinked his eyes quickly, trying to fight back the tears that had suddenly welled up in his eyes at the mention of Theseus. 

Newt was silent for a moment. Then, “I’m sorry, you don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to, I-“ 

“No,” Credence forced himself to say. “He’s dead. I killed him.” 

Newt did not say anything.

He took a shaky breath before continuing. “Grindelwald taught me to use the Cruciatus curse. He wanted me to learn to interrogate the prisoners. Abernathy brought Theseus in, and I used the curse on him so many times... And then... He told me to kill him, so I did... I shouldn’t- I-I don’t know why I...” 

When he looked over at Newt, he saw that Newt was rooted in place, his eyes a mixture of shock and confusion. 

“I found his wand as I was leaving Nurmengard, in some sort of trophy room. I just thought... It was the least I could do for Theseus - to bring him home.” 

Newt’s expression slowly morphed into something close to grief. He looked at Credence, his lips trying to form words, but after a few moments, he gave up and hurriedly left the shed, leaving the door ajar behind him. 

-

Newt felt a twinge of guilt for leaving Credence alone in his shed, but he had to get away. Theseus couldn’t be dead. Not Theseus. _Not strong, brave, caring, loyal Theseus._

He did not bother to close the door of the shed behind him as he stumbled out. His feet brought him through his usual path amongst his creatures, but his heart and mind were not there. A mixture of grief and hurt and anger and pain had welled up in him as he walked from the shed, and he barely noticed as a hippogriff wandered up to him and nudged him in the arm, instead letting his legs lead him down the dirt path. 

From inside his pocket, Pickett peeked out, seeming to sense his distress, and looked up at him, climbing out and onto his arm. Pickett chirped as he brought his hand up, and he attempted to smile at the little creature balanced on the back of his trembling hand. 

He found himself standing in front of the rocks where Frank the thunderbird used to perch when Newt called for him. He slowly sank down to the ground, his back against the boulders, bringing his knees close to his body. Curled up against the rocks, he finally allowed the tears to fall. He muffled his cries in his arm as his body shook with each sob, the tears staining his sleeve. 

On his arm, Pickett chirped questioningly, using his long arms to prod against Newt’s hand. When he got no reply, he scuttled off Newt, perching on the rock next to him. 

After some time, Newt was dimly aware of someone crouching down in front of him. Tina. 

“Newt?” Tina’s voice seemed to come from far away. She gently took his hand in hers, lacing her fingers through his. 

“Newt? What’s wrong?” Tina said softly, putting a hand on his shoulder to steady him.

“Tina...” Newt whispered, his voice cracking. “He’s dead, Tina... He’s dead and I... I did nothing to...” 

Saying the words out loud just made the aching in his chest a hundred times worse - it was almost like accepting that Theseus was gone. _He can’t be gone._

“Who’s dead, Newt?” Tina asked, worried now. “Credence?” 

Newt took a shuddering breath, looking up at Tina. His vision was blurred with tears, but he could see Tina kneeling in front of him, her eyes filled with concern. 

“Theseus,” he managed to whisper, before choking up again and dissolving into tears once more. 

A quiet “Oh,” escaped Tina’s lips, before she leaned in and pulled Newt closer to her, wrapping her arms around his shaking body tightly. 

“He killed him, Tina... Credence...” Newt said, his voice muffled as he buried his face in Tina’s shoulder. “They made him use _Crucio_... He didn’t mean it... I know he didn’t... They made him...” 

Tina gently reached down and guided Newt’s head upwards so that he was looking at her. 

“Newt, Theseus died a hero. It’s over now; wherever he is, he isn’t in pain any more.”

-

Newt went back into the shed alone. His mind was still reeling, but he knew he needed to talk to Credence. 

As he entered the shed, he saw that Credence had managed to prop himself up with a few pillows.

“I know you’re going to turn me in. Just get it over and done with,” Credence said. “I’m a monster, anyway. I deserve it,” he added, quieter. 

Newt shook his head, still trying to figure out what to say. “I don’t blame you, Credence. It wasn’t your fault. They made you do it.” 

“It was how my brother wanted to go out, anyway. He always wanted to go down fighting, if he had to,” he said softly, his voice trembling. 

“I’m sorry,” Credence whispered. 

Newt looked up at him, his eyes not quite meeting his. “It’s not your fault, it really isn’t.” 


End file.
